Established: 2012

Proprietor: Yann Menager

Winemaker: Yann Menager

Wine Making Overview:

Hand harvest natural yeast ferments all in small batches of 5-10 barrels with 25% new. 30-50% whole bunch for reds and 100% for whites. Ageing on fine lees for 8 months for whites and 12-3 months for reds before bottling unfiltered with lowish SO2. Minimal intervention aiming for fine fresh terroir driven wines.

Average Production: 1300 Dozens

Viticulture: Organic - integrated farming

Vegan Friendly: Yes

Appellations:

  • AOC Cote Rotie

  • AOC Condrieu

  • AOC Saint Joseph

Vineyards: based in Saint Joseph with his own holdings also in Condrieu near Malleval and in Cote Rotie located just below La Landonne (Cote Brune)

Vineyard Area: 6.5 ha

 
“Yann Menager has set out to farm in the way that previous generations did. The vineyards are tended organically, grapes hand harvested, ferments done naturally with indigenous yeasts using some whole bunch in the ferments. He farms not just grapes but also goats, sheep, chickens and vegetables which are used at his mothers table d’hote which is within walking distance of his families farm and hamlet where they live. To stop for lunch at his mothers tiny table d’hote and savour her terrific cuisine with his handmade wines while also enjoying the breathtaking view is an absolute treat and always a highlight of any visit to this part of the northern Rhone.”

Yann Menager is the owner and winemaker for this small domain, established in 2012 and based in Saint-Joseph, just south of Condrieu. He was the vineyard manager for Yves Cuilleron for almost 20 years and has leveraged his knowledge of the great sites of the northern Rhône to acquire some superb vineyard parcels of his own. Over the last decade he has assembled 6.5 ha in Saint-Joseph, Condrieu and Côte Rôtie.

The vineyards are all managed organically, picking is done by hand and yields are kept low at around 35 hL/ha or less. The wines are made at Yann’s small stone winery in the tiny hamlet of Champailler, high above the vineyards of Saint Joseph at 798 m elevation and just below the aptly named Roche Paradis.

All the wines undergo natural ferment and natural malolactic conversion. The whites are whole-bunch pressed for maximum finesse and the reds all see 30-60 % whole bunches in the ferment. All the wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered.

Yann’s goal is to make the wines as simply as possible, with minimum intervention and a focus on purity. The result is a range of wines that show superb energy and balance, with a freshness and finesse that harks back to a day before super-extraction and lots of new oak became de-rigueur in the Northern Rhône. These are beautifully fresh and fine terroir driven wines that speak of the soils they are grown in. Needless to say they will remain an insiders’ secret as very little gets exported. Indeed most of the wines are consumed in some of the best restaurants of the region in Lyon and nearby.

‘Having always been a great admirer of the finest wines of the Rhone Valley since the early 1980s, in 1997 I visited the region and sought to discover the wines of Yves Cuilleron who at that time was largely unknown and he farmed just 6.5 ha. After knocking on the door of his cellar Yves opened the door and invited me in to taste and so I chose a selection of his wines to immediately ship to Australia. So it seems very fitting to introduce the wines of Cuillerons young friend and protege Yann to the Australian market more than 20 years later. I feel just as excited and even more sure about the quality of the discovery of this tiny estate as I did more than 20 years ago and I have the family from Mont-Redon to thank for this wonderful introduction as the tiny quantities of wine produced here mean these wines will never be easy to find.’ David Burkitt, Founder and Principal, Vintage and Vine.

WINE NOTES AND REVIEWS

2022 Condrieu Veauvignière - due May 2024
Produced from vines planted 1990 in a small south facing amphitheatre near Malleval right not far from the famous Lys de Volan site (Guigal recently bought half of Lys de Volan). The soil here is mica-schist (the same as Chateau Grillet) which imparts wonderful freshness and texture to the wine. Matured for 8 months in older barriques this wine shows the fresher and more mineral style of Condrieu. Only 250 dozen produced.

2022 Saint-Joseph blanc Les Vessettes - due May 2024
A field blend, produced from 50% Marsanne (67 year old vines) and 50% Roussanne (young vines) planted in decomposed granitic soil at Les Vessettes on the slope above the town of Chavanay. Fermented with natural yeasts in barrique with no battonage and bottled after malo to retain the freshness imparted by the granite soils. Only 355 dozen produced.

2021 Saint-Joseph rouge La Bergerie
100% Syrah from 19 year old vines also from the lieu-dit of Les Vessettes on granite above the town of Chavanay. The wine was fermented with about 30% whole bunches to produce an elegant floral style of Syrah. Matured in older barriques for 12 months before bottling without fining or filtration. 800 dozen produced.

2021 Saint-Joseph rouge La Madone
La Madonne is a small but spectacularly steep granite vineyard right beside the medieval village of Malleval. Facing due south the vines here are 68 years old and yield an impressively concentrated yet mineral and very detailed Syrah. The wine was fermented with about 60% whole bunches and then matured for 12 months in older barriques. More fragrant yet also richer and denser than the Bergerie, it finishes long with seductive velvety tannins and that trademark freshness and finesse. Only 165 dozens produced.

2021 Côte Rôtie Rozier - last few magnums available of 2020
Made from 100% Syrah in the lieu-dit of Rozier (Côte Brune) with a perfect south-west exposition from 23 year-old vines. The wine was fermented with about 50% whole bunches and then matured for 13 months in 1, 2 and 3 year-old barriques. A very fresh and aromatic style of Côte Rôtie from soils of schist and brown, iron oxide-rich clay on this superb site. How great Côte Rôtie used to be, elegant and perfumed, with lovely mid-palate volume and a long complex finish, framed by fine silky tannins and refreshing acidity. Only 120 dozens produced.